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The expectations for Oregon Ducks wide receiver Jurrion Dickey have been high from the moment he set foot on campus in Eugene. After all, he's the highest-rated receiver Oregon has signed out of high school since Cameron Colvin in 2004.
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound pass catcher was the lone five-star recruit the Ducks landed in the 2023 cycle, and many fans hoped he would carve out a role in his debut season. But that didn't happen. Instead he caught just one pass for seven yards, as he worked back to form following a season-ending injury that he suffered during his senior season.
Offensive coordinator Will Stein wants to be able to put players on the field and be confident that they fully understand their assignment, because that's what will allow them execute.
Now through two spring football practices, it sounds like Dickey is on track for a much larger role in Oregon's offense.
"It's like Jurrion last year. He wasn't ready. He's a phenomenal player. He's ready now," Stein said of Dickey when discussing young skill players. "But it takes time. And when guys can succumb to the process and understand that it doesn't happen overnight. Take a deep breath and realize that like I'm at a great place, the best place to play college football in the country and that I can grow and develop. Then when their time comes they're ready to play and there's no mistakes."
It's not a walk in the park for any young player to immediately grasp an offense as complicated as Oregon's. But Dickey's redshirt year was still valuable. It helped him get his bearings and now he's able to step onto the field with even more confidence, which he certainly didn't lack as a high schooler.
"He knows what to do. He knows where to line up. And when you know what to do and know where to line up, you can play fast and play to your ability," Stein added.
While he may not have seen the field much as a true freshman, he did have the benefit of learning behind some great wide receivers like Troy Franklin---and Stein sounds like he's excited to cut him loose.
"Now he's at a point, he gets lined up like that, he runs his route and now he looks like the player that we all anticipated he would look like. And he's in shape. And he's healthy. I love that kid. He has worked his tail off to get in good shape, to go out and produce for us. Sky is the limit for Jurrion as we all know."
While it's encouraging to hear how much Dickey has grown, it's far from a guarantee that he'll earn consistent snaps in a veteran-heavy wide receiver room that will welcome former Texas A&M standout Evan Stewart when spring practice resumes on April 2.
That said, Stein was blunt when laying out what he wants to see from one of his most promising young playmakers.
"Just keep competing. When the ball's up in the air go make a play. He's a big-body receiver, our one-on-one contested catches, we expect him to go catch the ball. It shouldn't be a 50/50 with him, he should go make the play, and that's what he's shown.
"He really took a big in bowl prep, 'cause it was like another 13 practices of spring football. We're going over base install again and you saw the down the field routes develop with him. Like a Troy (Franklin) or a Ferg (Terrance Ferguson), he's taking the ball off the defenders' heads."
Dickey projects to be squarely entrenched in Oregon's two deep at wide receiver, along with players like Tez Johnson, Traeshon Holden, Gary Bryant Jr. and Kyler Kasper.
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